Chapter 9-The Whispers

       I woke up slow. My eyes heavy like stone. My chest rose and fell weak. I felt silk sheets under me, soft, warmer than anything I ever touched. Gold walls shining faint in the light. It was Damien house. His private place. I should not be here but I was.  

My lips cracked. My throat dry. I tried to move but my arms felt like they carried iron. My legs heavy like rocks tied to me. I groaned low.  

The door creaked. A maid came in, her steps soft but her eyes wide when she saw me. She bowed deep.  

“Luna, you awake.”  

Luna. That word stabbed me. I was not Luna. I was weak. I was human. I was nothing.  

I wanted to answer but my throat tight. Only air came out. The maid rushed, poured water in a gold cup, and pressed it to my lips.  

When the water touched my tongue I felt fire. The mark on my neck burned again. Sharp. Alive. It was not normal. It was like something inside me was awake too.  

I coughed hard. The maid held me up. “Careful,” she whispered.  

Then I heard it. Voices outside. Many. Some loud, some soft but heavy. They were talking about me.  

“She fought like demon.”  

“No human can fight like that.”  

“She faint because she cheat.”  

“No, the moon gave her strength. I saw it in her eyes.”  

“She cursed. She will bring ruin.”  

I shut my eyes. My chest twisted. They hated me more now. I thought winning would make them see me. But no, it only made their hate sharper.  

---

Later the elders came. Fossils, old men with eyes sharp like knives. They stood around my bed, looking at me like I was something to study.  

“She is awake,” Elder Rowan said, voice hard like stone.  

“This is only first step,” another said.  

“The moon gave her strength but gift can also be curse,” one muttered.  

Their words cut me. I wanted to scream I did not ask for gift. I wanted to scream I never wanted to fight. I wanted to scream I was tired. But I stayed silent.  

Damien stood at the window, his back to us. His shoulders stiff. His hands fisted. He did not look at me. He did not say a word. But I felt his anger fill the room. It was like fire choking me.  

One elder spoke louder. “She must recover fast. The next trial will break her or make her.”  

Then they left. Their steps heavy, their eyes still cutting me even after the door shut.  

---

The night was long. I could not sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the fight. I saw the girls falling. I saw my own hands striking. That was not me. I never hit like that. That was something else.  

When I finally drifted, I dreamed. The moon again. White and full. A woman’s shadow in the light.  

“You are not weak,” she said. “But you must bleed more.”  

I woke with sweat all over my skin. My heart running fast.  

Morning came. I forced myself up. My body still weak but I would not hide. I wanted to breathe air.  

I stepped outside. The sun hot. The pack yard full. They froze when they saw me. Eyes everywhere. Whispers louder now.  

“She alive.”  

“Not possible.”  

“She cheat.”  

“She cursed.”  

Then Clara’s voice cut through. Her smile cruel.  

“Look at her. Pretending strong. She only won because of trick. She faint like child.”  

Laughter broke out. Cruel. Cold.  

I walked slow. My fists shook but I kept my head up.  

One boy spat near my feet. “Not Luna. Never Luna.”  

My chest ached. My eyes burned. But I would not give them my tears. Not now.  

I reached the far end of the yard. My legs weak. My mind screaming to turn back. Suddenly the air grew heavy. Cold. The pack fell silent.  

Damien had stepped out.  

He walked slow. His aura thick, pressing on all of us. His eyes hard. His face carved in stone.  

The whispers died. The laughter died.  

He stopped near me, his voice deep, shaking the air.  

“If anyone doubt her, they doubt me. If anyone insult her, they insult me. She is my mate. She is marked. The moon chose her. Dare question the moon and you question me. And I will tear you apart.”  

Gasps. Bows. Heads lowered. Even Clara’s smirk fell.  

Damien turned his eyes on me. His gaze heavy. I saw anger in him. I saw confusion too. I saw something I could not name. He turned away quick. He left without another word.  

The pack bent deeper. None dared speak. But their eyes still full of doubt, full of hate. 

That night I sat alone in the gold room. The whispers would not leave my ears.  

“She cheat.”  

“She cursed.”  

“She not Luna.”  

I hugged my knees. Tears spilled fast. My heart hurt like someone ripped it out.  

I looked at the moon through the window. Bright. Silent.  

“Why me,” I whispered. “Why did you choose me. I don’t belong here. They hate me. He hates me. I never asked for this. Why not give him a strong wolf. Why me.”  

The mark on my neck burned again. The heat spread through my veins. I gasped.  

And then I heard it. Soft. The same voice from my dream.  

“You are not weak. You are chosen. But chosen must suffer. Chosen must bleed. That is the law.”  

I shook my head hard. “No. I don’t want this. Take it back. Please take it back.”  

But the voice was gone. Only silence. Only my sobs filling the room.  

---

The next days were worse. Everywhere I went whispers followed. Some lowered their heads out of fear of Damien. But when his back turned they spat words sharp as knives.  

“She not last long.”  

“She will die in next trial.”  

“Moon made mistake.”  

“She curse all of us.”  

Clara never stopped. She laughed loud whenever she saw me. She told others I was a fraud. She called me weak.  

I bore it. I kept my head high. But inside I was breaking.  

---

One night I sneaked outside alone. The wind cold. The stars high.  

I walked to the training yard. The ground where I fought still marked. Blood stains still dark. My blood. Their blood.  

I touched the dirt. My hands shook.  

“I don’t know if I can do this,” I whispered. “I don’t know if I can survive. Maybe they are right. Maybe I don’t belong.”  

The night gave no answer. Only the mark burned, pulsing like a heartbeat.  

I closed my eyes. My tears fell fast. I cried till my chest hurt.  

And in the silence I heard whispers again. Not from people. From inside me. From the bond. From the moon.  

“You will fall again. But when you rise, none will stand before you.”  

My eyes opened wide. Fear and hope battled in me.  

I hugged myself tight. I was scared. I was tired. I was broken. But a small fire burned inside me now.  

Even if the pack hated me, even if Damien doubted me, even if the trials tried to kill me… maybe the moon was not wrong.  

Maybe I was chosen.